Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Jammin' 101


Every once in a while I want to post about something that has nothing to do with business.  And since June is just about here, that means strawberries in my neck of the woods.  And every year, strawberry jam is the first in my jammin' adventures.

It's fun, it's rewarding and soooo delicious.  No matter how much I make, it is usually all gone by the time the next season gets here.

Many of you may already jam, if my  suspicions are right.  But if you have never jammed before...there's always a first time.  Here ya go...




Start with fresh strawberries. Usually get them the same day you plan to jam or the day before at most. Six quarts made three batches of eight 8-oz jars, for a total of 24.






Instead of cutting the green top off, use a straw that you push up through the bottom of the berry and it pops the top right off. Easy!




Gather your tools. I have a steamer instead of the usual water bath method. I like it better and think it's easier. This is a Weck steamer/processor.





Food processor to chop the berries. But you only pulse intermittently so you don't totally puree them. You want pieces and even a couple whole berries.









LUNCH!

 
 
 
 

Mix 7 cups of sugar (yes, 7!) with 4 cups of chopped up strawberries, 1/2 tsp of butter to minimize foam and heat to a rolling boil. Then add 1 packet of liquid Certo pectin, return to a rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minutes. Remove from heat and skim off the foam.




Pour the cooked strawberries into your jars that have been washed in soapy hot water. Put your lids on the jars and process for about 10-12 minutes.





Et voila!! Perfect confitures de fraises. :)








4 comments:

  1. It looks so much cleaner and easier when you do it. I usually make freezer jam as it tastes more like fresh strawberries to us. Heck, I like to just freeze the berries and eat them so I can pretend it's still summer. If I close my eyes while eating them it works. Sort of.

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  2. Wow!!, such neat work. I love strawberries. Not very common here. Very expensive too.

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  3. Enjoyed this! Makes me want to do some jammin' of my own. It is that time of year, isn't it? Yours looks yummy, Sylvie, and man are you neat in the kitchen!

    Kathi

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